


Cargo

by fireflysglow_archivist



Category: Firefly, Stargate Atlantis
Genre: F/M, Het, M/M, Slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2006-04-01
Updated: 2006-04-01
Packaged: 2019-04-29 08:25:32
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,526
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14468757
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fireflysglow_archivist/pseuds/fireflysglow_archivist
Summary: Serenity is carrying some very interesting cargo.





	Cargo

**Author's Note:**

> Note from alice ttlg, the archivist: this story was originally archived at [Firefly’s Glow](https://fanlore.org/wiki/Firefly%27s_Glow), and was moved to the AO3 as part of the Open Doors project in 2018. I tried to reach out to all creators about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are the creator and would like to claim this work, please contact me using the e-mail address on [Firefly's Glow collection profile](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/fireflysglow/profile).

Cargo

## Cargo

"River!" Simon called out as he ran into the cargo bay, "Careful with that," he said softly, gently reaching out to take the drop cloth out of her hands. He looked up at the metallic circle that she had uncovered. 

"Oh, shiny!" Kaylee called out as she bounced into the room. "Did the captain finally decide we all deserve a look at this thing?" Jayne's grunt followed by River's sigh were the only clues that the large man had entered the room. 

"No, the captain did not decide it was time to play with the," Mal paused, glancing up at his cargo, "What the hell is that anyway? It looks like some kind of high tech wedding arch." He glared at River before continuing, "A high tech arch that we were instructed to leave covered until we hit landfall." 

"The dark will scare them when they come," River rolled her eyes and then burst out in a grin, "Now!" she laughed before pulling Jayne to the side of the room. The futuristic wedding thing began to glow blue, and then a cloud of bubbles came out of it. Seconds later the cargo bay had four new occupants. 

"Oh this is going well," Rodney snapped out as he slowly, and hopefully non-threateningly, raised his arms. The planet must have changed a bit since they had last been here. He only hoped that they still served those little muffinish things with dinner. 

John smiled as he raised his own hands and stared down the barrel of a, "Is that a pistol?" he asked, half laughing, half hoping he didn't offend his already ornery looking host. 

"Yeah, and you best start giving me reasons not to shoot you with it. I don't take too kindly to strange folk poppin' up out a nowhere and causing a commotion in my cargo bay," Mal shook his pistol at Ronon, "You move, I shoot. Now talk." 

"Mal!" River squealed as she jumped in front of the intruders, "They mean you no harm." At Mal's raised eyebrow, she sighed and rolled her eyes, "If you shoot them, you will shoot me. If you shoot me," 

"Then we have one less captain," Jayne growled. He didn't turn his face away from the potential fight, but Mal could feel the threat. 

"They came from very far away," River continued after blowing a kiss to Jayne, "Welcome to Serenity," she grinned at Teyla, and then put her hands on the other woman's shoulders and bowed her head. Teyla took the hint and they touched foreheads. 

"Thank you," she replied as she stood upright again, "We do not mean to startle you. We are just wondering why the gate has been moved." 

"You mean the wedding prop?" Mal asked with a skeptical look. 

"The stargate," Rodney grumbled, waving his hands, "The magical portal of the Ancients? The, um, much worshiped holy ring? What the hell do you call it?" 

"It's cargo," Kaylee said with a quizzical look in her eyes. "But how did you pop up out a nowhere? It's shiny, ain't it, Captain?" Kaylee asked with wide eyes as she took in the blue glow. 

"Oh yes, mighty shiny," Mal sighed and lowered his pistol. "Well, this obviously ain't what you came looking for. Now, uh, go back?" He gestured at the stargate, which proceeded to blink out. 

"Cargo?" John asked with a raised eyebrow, "You're smuggling a stargate?" 

"Look," Mal threw up his hands in frustration, "I just take things from point A to point B. Up `til now I've been doing that without people comin' out a thin air and messing with my boat. Why do I always lose control of my own damn ship?" He growled at Jayne's not so concealed chuckle. "I'm gonna go let Zo know about this whole mess. Figure it out," he pointed at River, "I may regret this, but you're in charge. Fix it." 

"Sometimes he gets a bit crazy," River giggled as she watched Mal storm off. Simon trailed behind him, attempting to placate him with gentle tones and frantic hand gestures. 

"You're one to talk," Kaylee laughs as she brushes against River. "So can ya'll just go back through that shiny circle anytime you want?" 

"Sure," John said at the same time Rodney snapped, "No." John looked at him and raised an eyebrow. 

"We cannot just go back through the gate. It looks like the gate was the only thing these people picked up. The DHD seems to be on the planet still, and we have to go back there if we're going to have any chance of firing up the stargate again." 

"Huh," John said, chewing absentmindedly on his lower lip. 

"Yes, huh," Rodney mocked, "Elizabeth isn't expecting us to come back for at least three days. We'll have to wait until she establishes a wormhole and radios us, but we still need to get back to the original planet if we're going to do this." 

"Zo said we had a five day flight time, but I'm sure she can turn us around and get us back planet-side soon enough. You're welcome to stay on board until you can go back," River nudged Jayne when he scowled at the new arrivals. 

"Yeah," he squeaked, "Yeah. You can stay here. I'm sure Mal will love the company." He chuckled. Oh yeah. Mal would love the company like he'd enjoy an extended visit from the Reavers. 

"He'll come around on ya'll," Kaylee said, "Anyway, new people are fun and all, but I have to get back to the engine room. I don't know how Serenity is handlin' all the, ya know, fuzziness that just went on in here." 

"I'm John Sheppard," John said as he held out his hand. Kaylee smirked, and she wiped hers on her jumpsuit before shaking it. "Maybe our lead scientist could take a look at the engines with you? If something went wrong, I'm sure he can help out." 

"Of course I can help out," Rodney scoffed his way past John and gave what could have been a smile to Kaylee, "I'm Rodney McKay. Where's the engine room?" Kaylee introduced herself as she led Rodney out of the room. Rodney's condescending "hmms" echoed back to the cargo bay, but Kaylee just bounced along side him, babbling about her girl. 

"I can show them to their quarters," River said, but Jayne reached out and put a hand on her shoulder before she could move. 

"Weapons," he growled, hugging Vera tightly to his chest. "You got `em, I need `em before River here can show you around." 

"You do not trust us?" Teyla asked, glancing at River. 

"He doesn't always listen to me," River glared at Jayne, but helped gather up an assortment of guns and knives. "I am sure you can have them back soon, right Jayne?" 

"Darlin'," Jayne smirked at River, "You and me both know you could kick every ass in this room. I just don't want to take a chance of ya getting' shot while doin' it." 

"Hey now," John said, raising his hands again, "There shouldn't be any reason for weapons anyway. We were supposed to be buying fruit, not intruding on foreign spaceships." 

"All the apples are gone, as is the guilt," River mumbled with a quick look at Jayne. "I could still have you on the floor and begging for mercy in 5.6 seconds." 

"You are a small one," Ronon said. He had his arms crossed and kept shooting menacing looks at Jayne. 

"She's small, but she's my girl," Jayne grunted at Ronon, "You be sure to remember that. Maybe the cap'n will ok some sparing later on. I'll show you how we work out here in the black. That your girl?" he asked, cocking his head at Teyla. 

"Yeah, you remember that." Ronon and Jayne stared at each other for a second, and then both took small steps towards their respective women. 

"Well, that was a manly show of muscle," John shook his head and looked at River, "You said we had a place to stay?" She nodded and led them through the hallways of the ship. 

"I would be happy to spar with you later, if that is what you wish," Teyla said, breaking the silence that had surrounded the group. River paused in front of the room that she and Simon used to occupy. Simon had since moved in with Kaylee, and River begged Mal into letting her take over Inara's old shuttle. 

"I would love the practice," River said, sliding one of the doors open. She let Teyla and Ronon step through, but blacked the door before John could enter. "No, not your room. Two people to a room. Two people; two bodies; two hearts. Rodney and John share hearts in there," she pointed John to the room across the hall. 

"Thank you," John said, pursing his lips together, "Rodney and I and our hearts will be fine over here." 

"Two hearts enter, one leaves," River laughed, and then nodded like she had said something profound. Then she skipped away, leaving a very bewildered John behind. 

"I don't think she's all there," he finally said, after getting questioning looks from Teyla. 

"Though I am sure you and Rodney will enjoy the sharing of your hearts," she said with a smirk. 

"While Teyla and I enjoy the sharing of our bodies and hearts over here," Ronon gave John a look that said `get the hell out of here, I've been given a private room with my girl for 3 days.' John took the hint and wandered off. He passed what looked like a medical bay and wondered how these people we civilized enough to have spaceships but still shoot with pistols. It was going to be an interesting few days. 

* * *

"You keep a hammock in your engine room?" Rodney questions when they walk into the brightly lit room. 

"Sometimes I need a quick break when I'm, "Kaylee trailed off as she looked at the engine. "Hold on," she held up a hand to silence any further ramblings from Rodney and sank to her knees next to the engine block. Rodney didn't have the greatest people skills in the galaxy, in fact he was pretty sure he was near the bottom of the list, but he knew enough to remain silent when someone was fixing something. If only the idiots he worked with could manage to come to the same conclusion. 

"I told Zo not to try that maneuver back on Whitefall. Gorramit. Hand me that screwdriver?" she held out a hand, not bothering to look away from the wire she was poking at. Rodney hastened to comply, searching for the screwdriver and placing it in her hand. He had no idea why he wasn't poking his nose in the engine, but the girl seemed to know what she was doing. John had said to play nice, after all. Well, he hadn't said anything, but Rodney could read his face. On his way out of the cargo bay, John had given him a very stern play nice look. Rodney let his mind wander to what other kind of looks he might one day be able to get out of John when Kaylee clapped her hands together and turned to him with a face full of sunshine. 

"Got it!" she said, tossing the screwdriver to the floor. Then she did something no one on Atlantis would ever think of doing: she reached under the engine, pulled out a plug with a loud "pop" and snapped it into place somewhere else. The engine's spinning sped up a little, and then the room was filled with a healthy humming sound. 

"Do you even know what you're doing?" Rodney cried out, waving his hands at the engine wires, "You can't just go around snapping wires in and out of place! Your engine could have failed," he frantically crawled underneath the engine, intent on keeping the ship from falling from the sky. Kaylee waited a full five seconds before laughing at his drawn out, "huh." 

"I'm the mechanic, Rodney," she smiled down at him, "I just about doubled the energy output. Zo must have lost one of the panels on the last takeoff. My girl should be running better than ever now." 

"That really is quite amazing," Rodney said, slightly in awe of the cute yet overly cheerful girl sitting next to him. "But nothing in here is where it belongs. Your engine should not be running right now," he argued softly, randomly poking at a wire. 

"Just because something is in the right place, don't mean it's in the place it can do most good," Kaylee shook her head than looked pointedly at Rodney, "Now get out of my engine before you break something. Serenity's my girl, and I know how to work with her. Come on, it's my turn to cook dinner. You can help." Kaylee bent down and grabbed hold of Rodney's wrist, pulling the stunned scientist up to his feet. With one backwards glance at the modified engine, Rodney followed her to the mess. 

* * *

John left Ronon and Teyla to their own, probably more entertaining, pursuits and found himself on a stairwell overlooking the cargo bay. The stargate looked odd standing there, in the middle of the metal room. It should have been grounded on a planet, or at least floating around one. Why would anyone decide to move one? These people obviously didn't know anything about ancients or gate addresses, and John wondered what he'd gotten his team into. 

"You care for them," River said as she slid closer to John. She rested her elbows on the railing in a mock pose of his own. 

"My team?" he asked. He couldn't see anything outwardly wrong when he looked at her, but she had an odd vibe around her. She seemed nice enough, but he had the sense that she knew more than she was showing. 

"Your team, and your people. Do not fear, your gate will get you back to the city of the water," she smiled, patting his arm reassuringly. 

"How do you know about the city?" John asked, taking a precautionary step away from her. 

"They used my brain," she whispered, "fiddled around and made me see things. Don't be afraid," she said, smiling again, "I'm better than I was. I forgot how to be a real girl, but I learned again. My Jayne taught me. Your Rodney will teach you, too." Her eyes sparkled with something John couldn't place, but it reminded him vaguely of the spark Cadman got whenever she was matchmaking. 

"Rodney's going to teach me how to be a real girl?" he chuckled, "I'd really rather he didn't." 

"Not girl," River rolled her eyes. Seriously, how did people get by without her? She sensed some form of limited intelligence in Rodney, but there was no hope for anyone else on this ship, "Rodney will teach you how to be real again; a real John Sheppard, not the one you hide behind." 

"Listen, River," John said, waving his hands at her, "I'm not hiding anything. I just want to figure out how to get through the stargate and leave you and your ship be." 

"You are playing hide and seek with your past," River spoke to him like he was a small child, "Do not fear desire. It keeps us separate from the Reavers. Your team will not crack and fall to pieces if you take hold of what you want." She looked at him for a moment before tilting her head and grinning, "Beware of the citrus. Lemons and limes are bullets and plagues." 

"Rodney's allergic," John mumbled, looking out into the empty cargo bay. He wasn't one to take advice from strangers, so he prepared to forget everything this possibly prophetic, but definitely whacked out girl had told him. 

"Rodney cares for you, too" River said from behind him. "Toss out the fruit and the darkness and let him into your light." She patted his head like one would a child before she slowly walked away. John listened to her receding footsteps, wondering what the hell that had just been about. 

The more he thought about it, the more sense it seemed to make. Maybe the crazy girl was right. She did know about Atlantis and the customs of the Athosians. Maybe she knew about Rodney's feelings as well. But after years of ignoring a certain side of himself, it was going to take more than a physics' rambling to make him cross that line; make him feel the things he had shut off for so long. John sighed. How had he gone from negotiating for fruit to contemplating following River's advice and hitting on Rodney? Sometimes life in the Pegasus galaxy was just fucked up. 

* * *

Things on Serenity had been going surprisingly well, and John knew it was just about time for some kind of catastrophic event to happen. He nearly congratulated himself when everything went to hell during dinner the second night, but was too busy trying to figure out what the hell was going on. 

"Really," Rodney beamed at John, "You ought to see how Kaylee has configured the engine room. She does things that shouldn't be possible, but end up working terrifically. It's too bad we can't take her back to Atlantis with us," he laughed, taking another sip of Kaylee's inter-engine wine. 

"The city sounds real nice, but I'm not to eager to get all broken up and put back together again in that gate of yours. It sure is pretty though," she sighed, thinking about the way the gate had lit up, blue lights flashing around the cargo bay. 

"No," Rodney laughed, "You're pretty; she's pretty," he waved a hand at River, "The gate is one of the best inventions of the Ancients." There was a slight pause before Simon scowled and turned to Jayne. Simon might have let it go, but Jayne looked ready to smack the doc, the foreign doc, for daring to hit on Kaylee and River. John rolled his eyes at Rodney then poked him. 

"Apologize," he whispered. Zo coughed, eyes locked on the exchange. There hadn't been trouble yet, but it was best to be prepared. 

"What?" Rodney hissed, "I didn't do anything wrong." 

"Anything wrong," Jayne grunted, reaching for his knife. Knives always worked best for intimidation in an enclosed space. 

"Jayne!" River cried out, jumping out of her seat. She twisted his arm and easily took the knife away. "You have it all wrong," she sighed, as if talking to a child, "Kaylee is pretty, shiny, too, but she has bad parts." 

"Her parts seem fine to me," Simon said softly, looking at River with concern. 

"Aww, thanks, Simon," Kaylee giggled, blushing slightly. 

"Not bad," River muttered, rethinking her words. She smiled before crying out, "Wrong!" Her voice went low when she continued, "Rodney likes different parts. He doesn't fit with Kaylee." 

"Oh," Mal drawled out, "You're sly. No big deal. Jayne, listen to your woman. Everyone else, eat up." He stabbed a tomato with his chopstick. 

"Sly?" Teyla asked as Ronon chuckled next to her. 

"Gay," Ronon said, raising an eyebrow at Rodney. 

"What?" Rodney snapped. He paled then turned to River, "In my part of the galaxy people are smart enough to know when to shut up." 

"You never are," River shrugged, settling down in Jayne's lap. Rodney glared at her before jumping out of his chair. He took off, heading back towards the guest rooms. John shook his head, grinned at River, and hurried after him. 

"Rodney! Wait!" John called out as he ran through the hallway. Rodney slowed down a bit, and then finally slumped back down the wall. He shot a pained look at John, then laid his head back, not flinching as it hit the wall. 

"Rodney, it's ok," John said. He knelt in front of Rodney, hands out, but not making any move to touch the other man. "She knows things, Rodney. Don't worry about it." His hands hovered over Rodney's arms, trying to be as reassuring as possible, yet still treated him like a spooked horse. 

"Oh yes," Rodney growled, snapping his head up, "I don't know what the hell she told you, but you didn't get outed at a dinner party. Oh god," he paled, eyes searching John's face, "Do you think Ronon's homophobic? Because He's big, and well, I'm not that big, and I really, really tend to avoid getting beat up at all costs, and -" 

"Rodney!" John hissed at him, "Calm down. Ronon's not going to do anything to you. I'll talk to him if he has a problem. Everything will be ok." 

"Thank you for the meaningless platitudes. I'll be sure to keep that in mind when I'm getting my bones broken one at a time. Or did River tell you anything that might prevent that? Huh?" Rodney scowled at John, but panic floated beneath the anger. 

"As a matter of fact," John drawled out, "She did." He took a deep breath while Rodney just stared at him, anticipating. John smirked before leaning forward, gently pressing his lips against Rodney's. He cupped Rodney's head in his hands in a gentle but persistent way. At first, the scientist didn't respond, but then he threw himself into the kiss, opening his mouth under John's coaxing tongue. John bit Rodney's lower lip as he backed away, tugging gently. 

"Huh," Rodney said, blinking up at John. "I suppose that will work." He grinned and ran his thumb over John's lower lip, watching it tremble under his touch. John was about to kiss him again when he heard footsteps echoing through the hallway. 

"You too ok?" Kaylee asked as she walked over. She took over the scene, and then her face lit up in a smile. "I suppose you're doing just fine." 

"More than fine," John laughed. He stood up and reached a hand down to pull Rodney up. Rodney sent him a shy smile before they followed Kaylee back to the mess. 

* * *

John had never considered himself an idiot, but telling Rodney that it would be wrong to have their first intimate contact in a strange ship's guest quarters was not his best idea ever. His entire day had been filled with glances, soft smiles, and "accidental" brushes from Rodney. Each casual touch buzzed under his skin, daring him to just give in, drag Rodney back to their room, and not come out until Weir contacted them. 

Instead, he hovered over the controls in the cockpit. Well, he hovered over River while she sat at the controls. The girl might be a tight and tiny package, but she certainly kicked Telya's ass that morning. It was mesmerizing to watch the way River's limbs moved; such grace and power, almost floating around the room with precision. 

"River?" he asked, pouting slightly, "Can I try it today?" 

"You asked Zo yesterday, and my answer is the same," she rolled her eyes, barely turning to head to look at him. 

"Please?" John begged, not bothering to feel shame at wanting to fly a ship that maneuvered like this one did. River looked so at peace at the controls; looked like she wanted nothing more than to continue flying forever. John imagined the warmth that spread through her body, the tightness of her grip on the controls, and imagined himself in the same position. 

"No," River laughed, "You have to love her before you can fly her." She spun around and tilted her head at him, "You have something you can fly. Go love him." 

"I, uh," John stammered, "You shouldn't say things like that." He ran a hand through his hair, wondering when it had started getting so damn hot in here. Rodney had all but climbed onto his lap during dinner, pushing his chair closer and constantly reaching over for another dish. John had to agree to Simon's challenge of after dinner cards just to give himself time to calm down. 

"Tension only causes breaks," River nodded, turning back to the controls. "He needs you to calm him down. His heart beats like a caged beast inside his chest. Go soothe the fear. You will not be the only one taming a beast." She flicked a switch, setting the ship on autopilot and climbed gracefully out of the chair. "I have a Jayne to master," she wiggled her eyebrows and skipped out of the room. 

John shook his head as he watched her leave. Everyone on this damn ship was fucking crazy. He leaned against the doorframe, wondering why he always had to put stupid rules in place. Whistling, he went in search of Rodney. He aimed to misbehave. 

Sometimes things went John's way, and it turned out Rodney was reading in their room. Or more likely he had been reading before he had drifted off. John slid the door shut behind him, taking time to study the man asleep on the bed. Rodney's face was smooth in sleep, devoid of the tension and frustration that followed him throughout the day. He had stripped down to his pants and was lying on his stomach. John took in a breath at the sight of all the exposed skin. He looked to peaceful too wake up, even if to give him what he had been after for apparently quite some time. John smiled, and moved slowly across the room. He toed off his boots, eyes never leaving Rodney's sleeping form. He pulled his shirt over his head, dropped it on the floor, and stared down at what he could finally claim as his own. It didn't matter when he claimed him, this could wait until morning. 

Or it could have, before Rodney opened his eyes and sent a sleepy grin in John's direction. A warmth enveloped John's body, and he pounced. Rodney squeaked as John straddled him, not quite awake, and half not believing he was. Then John's mouth was on his and he forgot about the "no sex on the foreign ship" rule. His body burned everywhere it touched John's; their bare chests felt so hot brushing against each other. Rodney whimpered into the kiss, his tongue moving out to meet John's. 

John slid a hand between their bodies, going up on his knees so it could fit. He lowered Rodney's zipper with surprising skill, groaning into the kiss when Rodney hissed and arched up, seeking more contact. "Gonna do it right here," John whispered after he broke the kiss, "I'm gonna suck you off, and anyone could be walking by. You want it, don't you?" He dipped his head, tracing his tongue over the long line of Rodney's neck. It was salty and fantastic, and why the hell hadn't he done this sooner? 

"Oh god, yes," Rodney let out a breathy moan, trembling as John worked a hand into his pants. He cupped Rodney's length, rubbing as much as he could in the confines of the BDUs. 

"Wanna taste you," John murmured against Rodney's chest as he slid down. He flicked his tongue across a nipple, grinning at the hiss the other man let out. It seemed like Rodney was warm all over; one big heat source designed to drive John insane. He hurried, not sure he was willing to draw this out, and his fingers finally brushed against the open fly of Rodney's pants. He worked them down, just enough so that Rodney was exposed, but his knees were still trapped by the fabric. 

"Oh," Rodney sighed, and John looked up to catch his eyes. Rodney sent him a crooked grin and reached down, brushing the hair out of John's eyes. John wrapped his hand around Rodney, concentrating on the full hardness of him before bending down and taking the tip into his mouth. Rodney bucked his hips again, and John swallowed more of him. The wet heat was almost too much, and combined with the fact that it was John, Rodney could hardly hold himself back. He swore and looked down at John pleadingly. 

John swirled his tongue around the head, flicking across the slit. He pumped Rodney with one hand, while the other moved between his parted cheeks. He ran a finger over the opening there, and had to stop himself from frantically grinding down on the bed at the noises Rodney let out. He was panting out a mixture of John's name, pleas to God, and chocked grunts. John moved his finger in circles, and then pressed the tip inside of Rodney. 

"Oh fuck, John!" Rodney's body tensed up and suddenly he was coming. John pulled back, trying to get as much into his mouth as he could. A little bit dribbled down the side of his mouth, but he licked it up while looking at Rodney. He ground down against the bed at the sight of post orgasm Rodney. There was nothing as sexy as a completely debauched Rodney McKay; his eyes were half closed, his lips parted, and his body was glistening with sweat. 

John kneeled again and quickly removed his own pants. He let out a gasp when his cock sprang free. By the time he settled on top of Rodney, the other man was coherent again. "John," his breath fanned against John's neck. John groaned as Rodney ran his hands over his back and down his ass, cupping the firm cheeks. He thrust down, not able to hold it in any longer. Rodney kissed the side of his neck while he slid against his thigh. It only took a couple of thrusts before he was spraying between their bodies, covering their chests and the bed with his seed. 

"Oh shit, Rodney," he panted and collapsed half on top of him, half off. Turning, he pressed his lips against Rodney's. The moved together, hands sliding over sweat slicked bodies, and lips devouring each other. John's skin still burned wherever they touched, and he was pretty sure he should be able to see sparks jumping in the dark. 

He broke the kiss and smiled at Rodney. They lay there, grinning like fools in the dark, and John didn't give a damn if the entire ship had been outside the door. Hell, River seemed to know everything that happened onboard anyway. Hopefully their performance was up to par. 

* * *

"So I guess this is it," John drawled out. The stargate was ready to go behind him, Atlantis already expecting their quick return. 

"Our stay has been a much enjoyable one," Teyla stepped forward and nodded. Sensing her need, River met her halfway and the touched foreheads. Mal shrugged in the background. 

"Unless ya'll plan on droppin' in again, then this is goodbye," Kaylee frowned, but quickly covered it with a smile, "Though I wish I could see this bright and shiny city you live in." She looked at Rodney, who smiled back. He had been doing that a lot during the course of the past few days. 

"I'm not sure Serenity would get by without you, but Atlantis might have benefited as well," he bounced a bit when her smile grew. Something about the girl made him want to see that smile. It wasn't just her tools that kept the ship flying steady. 

"I wouldn't mind seeing those jumpers you talked about," Zo added from beside Mal. 

"Well if we ever meet again, I'm sure that can be arranged," John nodded. The puddlejumpers had their own DHD, so they could theoretically come back. He made a mental note to consider that after he had spent at least a week locked in his quarters with Rodney. 

"Well if we meet again, it won't be here," Mal gestured to the cargo bay, "We make the drop in 20 hours. You folks might not want to be planin' any visits to the new owners. I'm not thinkin' they'd be as accomidatin' as we were." 

"And we thank you for that," Teyla smiled at him. The captain had kept his distance, but she still felt a kindred spirit. 

"Take care of you an' your girl," Jayne told Ronon. Ronon nodded and patted his holster. 

"Enough of goodbye," River laughed. She went down the line, hugging each crew member before she stood in front of John. "You'll see us again," she smirked and wiggled her eyebrows, "We smuggle a lot." 

"Is that so?" John laughed then turned to his team. "I guess we can cut the goodbyes short. Let's move out." He waited for everyone to step through the event horizon before waving at the eclectic crew before him. "I'll see you around!" he called over his shoulder as he stepped through the gate. He had plans for the world's shortest debriefing, calling in a couple of days of downtime, and seeing how often he could make Rodney whimper "John." 

* * *

 

 

 

 

 

 

Title:   **Cargo**   
Author:   **Kueble**   [website]   
Details:   **Standalone**  |  **NC-17**  |  **het *slash***  |  **29k**  |  **04/01/06**   
Characters:  Malcolm, Zoe, Kaylee, Jayne, Simon, River, Other \- Rodney McKay, John Sheppard   
Pairings:  McKay/Sheppard, Jayne/River, Simon/Kaylee, Ronon/Teyla   
Crossover with: Stargate: Atlantis   
Summary:  Serenity is carrying some very interesting cargo.   
  



End file.
